How to complete the Countryside Stewardship
Higher Tier application form
Contents
About these notes
2
Further information
2
Before you begin
2
How to use these notes and complete your application
3
Step 1 – Complete Section 1: Applicant Details
3
Step 2 - Complete Section 2: Proposed agreement details
4
Step 3 - Complete your Farm Environment Record map(s)
6
Step 4 - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
8
Step 4a: Complete Annex 1: Agri Environment
8
Step 4b: Complete Annex 2: Woodland Support
13
How to score your Woodland Support application
18
Step 5 - Complete the Woodland Support agreement map
24
Step 6 - Complete Section 3: Environmental Benefits
24
Step 7 - Complete Section 4: Declaration and undertakings
27
Step 8 - Complete the Checklist
28
Step 9 - Submit your application
28
What happens next?
28
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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v1 (03/16)
About these notes
These notes set out the information needed to complete your application form to apply for a Countryside
Stewardship (CS) Higher Tier Agri Environment (with or without Woodland Support) or Woodland
Support only agreement in 2016 for a 1 January 2017 start date.
Please read the notes carefully and refer to them as you work through your application. Take the time to
ensure you complete your application accurately. If you complete the application form in full and include
all supporting documents it will help Natural England make a decision on your application as quickly as
possible.
Further information
If you have read the notes and are still not sure how to complete the form please contact Natural
England using the contact details at the top of the letter which was sent with your form.
Before you begin
Before you complete your application:
1. Read:

The CS Higher Tier Manual available at www.gov.uk/government/publications/countrysidestewardship-higher-tier-manual

The CS Higher Tier options and capital items guides using the CS grants finder tool available at
www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardship-grants
2. Make sure that:

You, and the land that you are including in your application, are eligible for Countryside
Stewardship (see Section 3 ‘Who can apply’ of the Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier Manual
2016).

You have read and understood the Countryside Stewardship scheme rules and requirements
including the terms and conditions in the Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier Manual 2016.

You have registered all of the land in your application on the Rural Payments service (including
notifying RPA of any corrections required via an RLE1 form) and that you have a Single Business
Identifier (SBI) number and a Vendor number. Please note if you wish to apply for capital items or
Maintenance of Weatherproof Traditional Farm Buildings outside of your land, that land, which
may include a farmyard will need be registered on Rural Payments. Failure to register all land
parcels may result in significant delays in finalising an agreement offer.
For information on registering your land see the ‘Register land with the Rural Land Register’
guidance at www.gov.uk/register-land-rural-land-register Note that the references in that
guidance to empowering agents do not apply to Countryside Stewardship and a CS Agent
Authorisation form (available from www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardshipauthorise-an-agent) will need to be completed to authorise an agent to submit the application
and/or manage the proposed agreement.

You have a County Parish Holding (CPH) number.
For information on obtaining a CPH number see the ‘Get a CPH number from the Rural Payments
Agency’ guidance at www.gov.uk/get-a-cph-number-from-the-rural-payments-agency

You have all of the necessary supporting documents required for this stage of your application
(for example supporting documents for organic applications).
Once you are content that your application pack is complete and you have all the information and
supporting documentation you need, use the guidance below to complete your application.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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How to use these notes and complete your application
The notes below are a step by step guide to filling in the application form and annexes. Each step
describes what you need to tell us, gives details of any supporting documents that you must send in with
your application and provides links to further information, where applicable.
To complete your application follow the steps below in the order shown.
Step 1 – Complete Section 1: Applicant Details
Complete this section to record the applicant(s) details.
Question 1.
Complete (a) to (h) with the applicant details for the proposed agreement. For
partnership agreements you should enter the names of all partners in (a). If there are
more than four partners please use a continuation sheet. The Business name in (b)
should be the name (beneficiary) that is registered with the Rural Payments Agency
(RPA) for the applicant’s SBI at Question 4.
These details will continue to be used to contact you about your agreement if your
application is successful. You should inform us immediately of any changes to your
contact information.
Question 2.
If the applicant named in Question 1 is not the main contact, please complete (a) to (h)
with the details of the person who should be contacted about this application.
Question 3.
Enter the six digit Vendor number of the applicant named in Question 1.
Question 4.
Enter the nine digit Single Business Identifier number of the applicant named in
Question 1, i.e. the SBI that the land in the application is registered under.
Question 5.
Enter the County Parish Holding (CPH) number of the applicant named in Question 1.
You should enter the CPH of the land you are including in the application. If you have
more than one holding please enter the CPH of your primary holding.
Question 6.
If applicable only, enter the VAT registration number of the applicant named in
Question 1.
Question 7.
If the applicant has been declared bankrupt in the past 5 Years, tick ‘Yes’, otherwise
tick ‘No’.
Question 8.
Tick one box only to let us know the legal trading status of the applicant
Question 9.
Tick the box to confirm that:
Question 10.

all of the land in the application has been registered on the Rural Payments service;

for all of the parcels in the application, the land details held on the Rural Payments
service as shown online are correct at the date of submitting the application or;

RPA have been notified of any corrections required via an RLE1 form
(a) If the applicant currently has management control of all of the land being included in
the application for the entire length of the proposed agreement and can meet the
Declaration and Undertakings in Section 4, tick ‘Yes’ and continue to Question 11,
otherwise tick ‘No’ and complete Question 10 (b).
(b) You will need to make a countersigned application with each person who would
take over the applicant’s responsibilities should they cease to have management
control over part/all of the land – this would normally be the landlord or other person
who actually has the management control. Arrange for each counter signatory to
complete a CS Land Ownership and Control form (available from
www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-land-ownership-andcontrol-form). Once this has been done tick the box at 10 (b) to confirm that you
have attached a CS Land Ownership and Control form for each counter signatory
required for your application.
For more information see Section 3.2 ‘Management control, eligibility and scheme
rules’ of the CS Higher Tier Manual.
(www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-manual)
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 1 continued – Complete Section 1: Applicant Details
Question 11.
(a) If any of the land being included in the application is common and/or shared
grazing land, tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 11(b), otherwise tick ‘No’ and
continue to Question 12.
(b) You will need to read the Countryside Stewardship: common land and shared
grazing supplement and include a CS common land and shared grazing
supplementary application form with your application. Once this has been done,
please tick the box at 11 (b) to confirm that you have read the supplement and
attached the form with your application.
For more information see Section 3.2.6 ‘Common land and shared grazing’ of the
CS Higher Tier Manual. (www.gov.uk/government/publications/countrysidestewardship-higher-tier-manual)
Question 12.
(a) If you are an agent (or a partnership representative acting as an agent) on behalf of
the applicant(s) tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 12 (b), otherwise tick ‘No’ and go
to Section 2 of the application form.
(b) You and the individual(s) on whose behalf you are applying must complete a CS
Agent Authorisation form (available from
www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-authorise-an-agent)
Once this has been done please tick the box at 12 (b) to confirm you have
attached a CS Agent Authorisation form with your application.
Step 2 - Complete Section 2: Proposed agreement details
Complete Section 2 to record the details of the agreement you are applying for.
Question 13.
Tick one box to confirm whether you are applying for an Agri Environment (without
Woodland Support) agreement, an Agri Environment (with Woodland Support)
agreement or a Woodland Support only agreement.
Question 14.
Enter the title that you wish the proposed agreement to be known by, for example the
land or farm name.
Question 15.
(a) If the applicant has held an Environmental Stewardship (ES) agreement on the land
under the SBI in the last ten years tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 15 (b),
otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to Question 16.
(b) Complete the table with details of the agreement numbers and expiry dates of any
ES agreements which are still live.
If any agreements on the land in the application are still live and do not expire
before the 1st January 2017, the land will need to be transferred out of the agrienvironment agreement. You can find information on how to complete a land
transfer at www.gov.uk/guidance/environmental-stewardship-change-transfer-orclose-your-agreement
The land transfer will need to be complete by the time your Countryside
Stewardship agreement goes live on the 1st January 2017. It is strongly advised
that you begin any land transfer processes as soon as you apply for Countryside
Stewardship to ensure your application is able to progress.
Question 16.
(a) If the applicant has held an English Woodland Grant Scheme (EWGS) agreement
(excluding Woodland Management Plans) on the land under the SBI in the last ten
years tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 16 (b), otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to
Question 17.
(b) Complete the table with details of the agreement numbers and expiry dates of any
EWGS agreements which are still live.
Question 17.
If the applicant has applied for or will apply for the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS) on
the land in the application in 2016, tick ‘Yes’, otherwise tick ‘No’.
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Step 2 continued - Complete Section 2: Proposed agreement details
Question 18.
If the applicant receives or has applied for any other funding other than BPS for the
management of any of the land parcels included in the application, tick ‘Yes’ and enter
details of the other funding in the box below question 18, otherwise tick ‘No’.
For more information see Section 3.4 ‘Land receiving other funding’ of the CS Higher
Tier Manual. (www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-highertier-manual)
Question 19.
(a) If the applicant is a tenant, tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 19 (b), otherwise tick
‘No’ and continue to Question 20.
(b) If the applicant has any obligations in their tenancy to carry out environmental
management tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 19 (c), otherwise tick ‘No’ and
continue to Question 20.
(c) Please tick to confirm that the applicant is not seeking funding for the obligations at
19 (b) in their application.
Question 20.
If any land included in the application is designated by HM Revenue & Customs as
national heritage property under the conditional exemption tax incentive (heritage
property relief) tick ‘Yes’, enter details in the box below Question 20 and attach a copy
of the map of the designated property and the anonymised undertakings, plus relevant
extracts from any supporting Management Plan, otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to
Question 21.
For more information see Section 3.4.9 ‘Inheritance Tax or Capital Gains Exemptions’
of the CS Higher Tier Manual. (www.gov.uk/government/publications/countrysidestewardship-higher-tier-manual)
Question 21.
Enter ‘1’ in the box which best describes the primary enterprise and ‘2’ in the box
which describes the secondary enterprise (if applicable) of the land in the application. If
you enter ‘1’ or ‘2’ in the ‘Other’ box, please give brief details in the box to its right.
The farm enterprise(s) should be as determined by the applicant based on how they
define their business.
Question 22.
If the applicant is a member of a Countryside Stewardship Facilitation Fund Group tick
‘Yes’ and provide the group’s name in the box below Question 22, otherwise tick ‘No’
and continue to Question 23.
For more information on the Countryside Stewardship facilitation fund see
www.gov.uk/government/publications/guide-to-countryside-stewardship-facilitation-fund
Question 23.
If a Catchment Sensitive Farming officer (CSFO) has previously given you any advice
for the land covered by the application, tick ‘Yes’ and enter the name of the CSFO in
the box below Question 23, otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to Question 24.
Question 24.
If the holding is in a protected landscape, i.e. a National Park, Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty or World Heritage Site, tick ‘Yes’ and enter the name of the landscape
in the box below Question 24, otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to Question 25.
If you are not applying for organic options (OR1-5 or OT1-6) you do not need to complete
questions 25 to 31. Please go to Step 3.
Question 25.
If you wish to continue with the Organic Management and/or Conversion options
should the non-organic element of the application be unsuccessful, tick ‘Yes’,
otherwise tick ‘No’.
Question 26.
(a) If the applicant is registered with a Defra licensed Control Body (CB), tick ‘Yes’ and
continue to Question 27, otherwise tick ‘No’ and complete Question 26 (b).
(b) If the applicant has completed a Viability Assessment and is including it with the
application, tick ‘Yes’, otherwise tick ‘No’, read the note below Question 26 (b) and
continue to Section 3.
Question 27.
Enter the name and address of the applicant’s licensed Control Body.
Question 28.
Enter the applicant’s Organic Licence number.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 2 continued - Complete Section 2: Proposed agreement details
Question 29.
Please tick the box to confirm that you have read the definition of an ‘active farmer’
contained in the ‘The ‘Active Farmer’ Rule’ section of the ‘Basic Payment Scheme:
Rules for 2016’ guidance and that the applicant meets this definition.
The ‘Basic Payment Scheme: Rules for 2016’ guidance is available from:
www.gov.uk/guidance/bps-2016#scheme-rules-and-other-guidance
Question 30.
If you are considering the organic conversion options (OR1-5) please tick the box to
confirm that you have completed and agreed with your Control Body a Conversion Plan
for all land and business you are entering into CS, otherwise leave the box blank and
continue to Question 31.
Question 31.
Please tick the box to confirm that you are including copies of the current Schedule and
Certificate from the applicant’s Control Body that cover all relevant land parcels in your
application, otherwise leave the box blank and go to Section 3 if you are applying for a
CS Higher Tier Agri Environment agreement or Section 4 if you are applying for a
Woodland Support only agreement.
Step 3 - Complete your Farm Environment Record map(s)
If you are applying for a CS Higher Tier Woodland Support only agreement you do not need to
complete this step. Please go to Step 4b.
Complete your Farm Environment Record (FER) map(s) to record all environmental features and
areas on the land parcels to be included in the application and mark parcels that are at risk of run off
or soil erosion.
The application does not have to cover the whole holding but it must include all land parcels that will
support rotational options plus any SSSI or Scheduled Monuments within your control. It is a condition
of Countryside Stewardship that you identify, map and retain these features and areas. Please
note Basic Payment Scheme cross compliance requirements apply across the whole holding.
Mark your environmental features and areas on your map
To complete your FER map(s) you will need to mark all of your FER features on the map(s). Walking
your holding will inform you which parcels are suited to Countryside Stewardship options and allow you
to mark the environmental features (as shown on your FER map’s key) within them on a copy of your
FER map, helping make sure that you do not miss any. Your Environmental Information map, included in
your application pack, may also indicate features that require marking on your FER map(s).
Take time to complete your FER map(s) as clearly and accurately as you can. As long as the markings
you make are clear and understandable Natural England will be able to accept your map(s).
Use the colours on the FER map’s key for marking each feature. Confirm that you have a feature on your
land by marking the corresponding blank symbol on the right side of the map key with the coloured
pencil you have used to mark that feature on the map. The completed map(s) must be submitted as part
of your application. For the following features, please note the following specific information:
Marking ‘boundaries with trees’
Only boundaries with, on average, one or more eligible trees per 100 m need to be marked as
‘boundaries with trees’. For example, a hedgerow of 400 m would need to have at least four eligible trees
along its length. Eligible trees are those that are native species, standing within 1 m of a hedgerow and
over 30 cm diameter at breast height. These boundaries should be marked with a green cross over the
boundary line, as shown in the FER map’s assigned colour key (In-field trees still need to be counted
and marked as shown on the key).
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 3 continued - Complete your Farm Environment Record map(s)
Marking hedges
On accepting a CS agreement you will be agreeing that you will not cut more than 50% of hedges in any
one year. This is a scheme baseline requirement that covers all hedges in Mid Tier and Higher Tier
agreements. It covers all hedges marked on the FER which meet the following CS hedge definition:
‘any planted boundary lines of shrubs (a woody plant where the distance between the ground and the
base of the leafy layer is less than 2 m) which are over 20 m long and less than 5 m wide (between
major woody stems at the base) and are composed of at least 80% native shrubs’.
This does not apply to road and trackside hedges that need to be cut annually or more frequently for
public safety.
To mark the cutting regime of the hedges on the FER map you will need to use two different types of
marking as indicated in the FER map’s assigned colour key, as applicable to the definitions below:
i.
Hedgerow (meets 50% cutting limitation). For those hedges that are managed as the baseline of the
scheme and no more than 50% of these hedges are cut in any one year (this includes hedges that
are to be included in CS capital or revenue options and will therefore have specific management
prescriptions). If hedges are in specific CS hedge management options, these specific prescriptions
should be followed by the agreement holder and checked on inspection, rather than the baseline
requirement.
ii. Hedgerow (exempt from the cutting limitation). For hedges that are exempt from this as they need
more regular cutting to maintain public safety.
Identify and mark parcels identified with ‘run-off and soil erosion risk’
Prior to completing the FER, you should consider whether any of your land is at risk from surface run-off
and soil erosion. If it is you should consider including it within the application area with an appropriate
management option or item. Controlling the problem could protect the environment and improve the
productivity of your land.
For all of the land parcels on the farm site you must assess the risk of run-off and soil erosion. The risk
assessment should be based on the consideration of three types of risk, which include:



Inherent Risk
Proximity and connectivity
Managed Risk
Inherent Risk, focussing on the risk of pollution associated with the topography, soils and naturally
occurring land conditions. Inherent risk can be greatly reduced if the management and use of that land is
done in a way sympathetic to the natural limitations. For example a field of great inherent risk due to
slope and soil texture might be of only moderate importance if that field were to be under woodland or
extensive grassland management. Factors to consider when defining the inherent risk include:



Soil texture (risk of detachment or poor infiltration);
Steepness of slope angles and slope length should be assessed to determine the relative overall risk
of an area of land;
Flooding frequency: land that floods is susceptible to erosion and run-off, particularly when under
cultivation.
This run-off may carry very fine soil particles, soluble pollutants such as plant nutrients and pesticides or
manures to watercourses. The observed water run-off is usually, but not always, discoloured. The
following table provides a guide to field classification for risk of run-off based on slope.
Soil type
All soils
Steep slopes >7°
Moderate slopes 3°– 7°
Gentle slopes 2°– 3°
(>12.3% gradient)
(5.25-12.3% gradient)
(3.5-5.25% gradient)
High
Moderate
Lower
Slope length, soil texture and flooding frequency must then be considered, and risk class adjusted
accordingly. For example, lighter soils on moderate slopes may have high risk of run-off leading to soil
erosion. Land that floods regularly (inundated at least 1 year in 3) must be regarded as being at high risk
of erosion and run-off (even at less than 2° slope).
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 3 continued - Complete your Farm Environment Record map(s)
Proximity and connectivity to target waterbody must then be considered. Fields that pose a relatively
high inherent risk for producing pollution may actually be less significant if those fields are not well
connected to a watercourse or waterbody. As a result the risk may need to be tempered or enhanced
through the consideration of that connectivity. For example:

Fields directly adjacent to target watercourse or waterbody is likely to increase the risk and likelihood
of pollution. In addition there may be increased risk where drains, ditches, tracks or other flow paths
directly connect field to target watercourse, waterbody or sensitive aquatic habitat.

Where there is at least one field between this field and the target watercourse or waterbody and
there are no flow pathways is unlikely to be higher than moderate risk.

Where there is little connection between this field and the target waterbody the risk class is likely to
decrease the risk of pollution.
Managed risk is primarily defined by land use and the identification of historic run-off and pollution
problems on that field. Signs of surface water run-off that may be associated with each of the risk
classes are described below:

High Risk Areas – Run-off or ponding seen in most years during wet periods.

Moderate Risk Areas – Run-off seen in some years during wet periods and in most years during very
wet periods.

Lower Risk Areas – Run-off seen in some years during very wet periods
The criteria given for the risk assessment are guidelines and professional judgement should be
used to upgrade or downgrade a site, taking into account additional factors such as:

soil structure (i.e. sensitivity to compaction, detachment and transport)

organic matter content (higher organic matter content usually increased infiltration)

valley features which tend to concentrate run-off water

long unbroken slopes (150m or longer)

rainfall (intensity relative to infiltration)

land use
Using the above risk assessment you must mark on the FER all fields that have been identified
as moderate or higher risk of surface run-off and soil erosion in brown hatching.
Step 4 - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Step 4a: Complete Annex 1: Agri Environment
If you are applying for a CS Higher Tier Woodland Support only agreement you do not need to
complete this step. Please go to Step 4b.
Annex 1 is an Excel spreadsheet, made up of worksheets for recording your application’s land, options
and capital items and worksheets to provide summary information and totals for your application. The
worksheets can be accessed by clicking on the tabs at the bottom of the page. The tabs are coloured red
to indicate that input is required or blue to indicate that they are for information only.
As you enter data on the spreadsheet, the later worksheets are populated with information from the
earlier worksheets, saving the need to enter information more than once. Therefore, it is imperative
that you begin at the ‘START HERE’ worksheet and complete Annexes 1a-e in order.
Please complete Annex 1 following the guidance for each worksheet below. Note that guidance is
provided below for all worksheets, but you should only complete the START HERE worksheets
and Annex 1a initially. Your adviser will work with you to agree your options and capital items and
complete the remaining annexes later in the process.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
START HERE worksheet
This worksheet must be completed for all applications.
Purpose: to enter details of the application’s lead applicant and Single Business Identifier (SBI).
Field
Entry required
Name of Lead Applicant
Enter the lead applicant’s full name. This must match a named applicant
on the application form.
Single Business Identifier
Enter the application SBI. This must match the application form.
Please select 'Yes' or 'No' to
indicate if you have a Site of
Please select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable in both the Site of Special
Special Scientific Interest or
Scientific Interest and Scheduled Monument drop down lists.
Scheduled Monument on
your holding:
Annex 1a: Land summary
This worksheet must be completed for all applications.
Purpose: to provide details of and information about the land parcels being included in the application.
Column heading
Action required
ID
Unique identifier for each parcel automatically generated when a land
parcel is entered, which can be used to cross reference parcels easily
between all of the annexes.
OS Map Sheet ref/National
Grid no.
Details of all of the land parcels relating to your application will be prepopulated in these columns.
Total land parcel size
If you find that some of your eligible land parcels are not shown in
Annex 1a:
LFA Status
If the parcels are visible on the map provided with your application pack
please add the details of the parcel to this sheet, otherwise please
contact us using the contact details at the top of the letter that was sent
with this application form.
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable.
Are you including this parcel
in your application?
Note: you must select ‘Yes’ for every parcel that you wish to
include in your application otherwise the parcel will not be
populated/available for selection in Annexes 1b-e.
Parcel name
(Optional): Enter the name that you use to identify the land parcel.
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable.
Run-off/soil erosion risk?
For more information on run-off/soil erosion see Step 3 - Complete your
Farm Environment Record map(s) of this guidance.
Enter the BPS land use code for the land parcel.
BPS land use code
For details of land use codes, see the latest list of codes on the ‘How to
apply for the Basic Payment Scheme in 2015’ page at
www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-apply-for-the-basicpayment-scheme-in-2015 Note if RPA update the codes for 2016 the
link above may not work and you may need to search for a later version
of the list on gov uk.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 1a: Land summary continued
Column heading
Entry required
Will Soil and Water/Resource
protection options/capital items be
used on this parcel?
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable.
For more information on water quality see Question 37 of this
guidance.
Do you wish to include this parcel in
the Wild Pollinator & Farm Wildlife
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable.
Package?
Does this parcel contain a SSSI?
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable. Note: if you selected ‘No’ to
the SSSI question on the ‘START HERE’ worksheet this cell will
be greyed out and you do not need to complete it.
Does this parcel contain a
Scheduled Monument?
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable. Note: if you selected ‘No’ to
the SM question on the ‘START HERE’ worksheet this cell will
be greyed out and you do not need to complete it.
Annex 1b: Non-rotational options
This worksheet must be completed if you are including non-rotational options in your
application.
Purpose: to provide the locations and details of the non-rotational options in your application.
Column heading
Entry required
ID
Automatically populated: Unique identifier for the parcel allocated on Annex
1a, populated once a parcel is selected in the ‘Land Parcel’ column.
Land parcel
Please select the land parcel you wish to add a non-rotational option to from
the drop down list.
Note if the parcel you require is not shown in the drop down list, please
check Annex 1a and make sure that you selected ‘Yes’ in the ‘Do you
wish to include this parcel in your application’ column.
Total land parcel size
Automatically populated: Land parcel size of the parcel selected in the ‘Land
Parcel’ column.
Boundary number
For boundary options only, please enter a unique reference number for each
boundary where the option will be carried out, e.g. 1, 2, 3, etc.
Option group
If you know the option group the option is in, please select a group to filter the
option drop down list in the next column by group. If you do not know the
group leave this column blank.
Option
Please select the required non-rotational option from the drop down list. If you
selected a group in the previous column the drop down list will be in group >
code order. If you did not select a group, the drop down list will be in option
code order.
IMPORTANT: for Option BE3 on both sides of a hedge you must allocate
EACH side of the hedge to the land parcel that it is directly adjacent to
and enter individual quantities for each length of hedging on those land
parcels.
Unit
Automatically populated: Unit of measurement for the option selected in the
‘Option’ column.
Quantity
Please enter the quantity of the option to two decimal places for ha, metres
and tonnes and as a whole number for all other units.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 1b: Non-rotational options continued
Column heading
Entry required
Area of linked BEHTA
feature
If the option has been selected to protect/enhance an environmental feature,
enter the feature’s measurement (e.g. length, area, unit etc), otherwise leave
the column blank.
Payment rate
Automatically populated: Payment rate for the option. Will not populate until
an option is selected in the ‘Option’ column.
Value
Automatically populated: Value of the option on this parcel. Will not populate
until the parcel’s size, option and quantity columns are complete.
Annex 1c: Rotational land
This worksheet must be completed if you are including rotational options in your application.
Purpose: to provide details of the land parcels you will use for rotational options during the life of the
proposed agreement.
Column heading
Entry required
ID
Automatically populated: Unique identifier for the parcel allocated on Annex
1a, populated once a parcel is selected in the ‘Land Parcel’ column.
Please select the land parcel you will use for rotational options.
Land parcel
Note if the parcel you require is not shown in the drop down list, please
check Annex 1a and make sure that you selected ‘Yes’ in the ‘Do you
wish to include this parcel in your application’ column.
Annex 1d: Rotational options
This worksheet must be completed if you are including rotational options in your application.
Purpose: to provide the locations and details of the rotational options in your application.
Column heading
Entry required
ID
Automatically populated: Unique identifier for the parcel allocated on Annex
1a, populated once a parcel is selected in the ‘First year location’ column.
Please select the land parcel that you will locate the rotational option on in the
first year from the drop down list.
First year location
Note if the parcel that you require is not shown in the drop down list,
please check Annex 1c and make sure that you have selected it on that
Annex.
Total land parcel size
Automatically populated: Land parcel size of the parcel selected in the ‘First
year location’ column.
Option group
If you know the option group the option is in, please select a group to filter the
option drop down list in the next column by group. If you do not know the
group leave this column blank.
Option
Please select the required rotational option from the drop down list. If you
selected a group in the previous column the drop down list will be in group >
code order. If you did not select a group, the drop down list will be in option
code order.
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 1d: Rotational options continued
Column heading
Entry required
Unit
Automatically populated: Unit of measurement for the option selected in the
‘Option’ column.
Quantity
Please enter the quantity of the option, to two decimal places for ha and
tonnes and as a whole number for all other units.
Payment rate
Automatically populated: Payment rate for the option. Will not populate until
an option is selected in the ‘Option’ column.
Value
Automatically populated: Value of the option on this parcel. Will not populate
until the parcel’s size, option and quantity columns are complete.
Annex 1e: Capital items
This worksheet must be completed if you are including capital items in your application.
Purpose: to provide the locations and details of the capital items in your application.
Column heading
Entry required
ID
Automatically populated: Unique identifier for the parcel allocated on Annex
1a, populated once a parcel is selected in the ‘First year location’ column.
Please select the land parcel you wish to add a capital item to from the drop
down list.
Land parcel
Note if the parcel you require is not shown in the drop down list, please
check Annex 1a and make sure that you selected ‘Yes’ in the ‘Do you
wish to include this parcel in your application’ column.
Total land parcel size
Automatically populated: Land parcel size of the parcel selected in the ‘Land
Parcel’ column.
Capital item group
If you know the capital item group the capital item is in, please select a group
to filter the drop down list in the next column by group. If you do not know the
group leave this column blank.
Capital item
Please select the required capital item from the drop down list. If you selected
a group in the previous column the drop down list will be in group > code
order. If you did not select a group, the drop down list will be in option code
order.
Unit
Automatically populated: Unit of measurement for the capital item selected in
the ‘Capital item’ column.
Quantity
Please enter the quantity of the capital item to two decimal places for ha and
metres and as a whole number for all other units. For capital items which
are paid as a percentage of actual costs enter the actual cost to two
decimal places.
Payment rate
Automatically populated: Payment rate for the capital item. Will not populate
until an option is selected in the ‘Capital item’ column.
Value
Automatically populated: Value of the capital item on this parcel. Will not
populate until the parcel’s size, capital item and quantity columns are
complete.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Grant totals worksheet
Purpose: this worksheet shows a list of all of the options and capital items in your application and the
total quantity and value of each option/capital item. Note that the worksheet will not populate fully until
you have completed Annexes 1a-e.
Application summary worksheet
Purpose: this worksheet shows the total values of non-rotational options, rotational options and capital
items in your application and the overall value of your application (excluding any capital items which
are paid as a percentage of actual costs). Note that the worksheet will not populate fully until you have
completed Annexes 1a-e.
Step 4b: Complete Annex 2: Woodland Support
If you are applying for a CS Higher Tier Agri Environment without Woodland Support agreement
you do not need to complete this step. Please go to Step 6.
Annex 2 is an Excel spreadsheet, made up of worksheets for recording your application’s land, options,
capital items and scores and worksheets to provide summary information and totals for your application.
The worksheets can be accessed by clicking on the tabs at the bottom of the page. The tabs are
coloured red to indicate that input is required or blue to indicate that they are for information only.
As you enter data on the spreadsheet, the later worksheets are populated with information from the
earlier worksheets, saving the need to enter information more than once. Therefore, it is imperative
that you begin at the ‘START HERE’ worksheet and complete Annexes 2a-e in order.
Please complete Annex 2 following the guidance for each worksheet below.
START HERE worksheet
This worksheet must be completed for all applications.
Purpose: to provide information about Annex 2 and to enter key details about your application.
Entry/Question
Entry required
Name of Lead Applicant
Enter the lead applicant’s full name. This must match a
named applicant on the application form.
Single Business Identifier
Enter the application SBI. This must match the SBI entered on
the application form.
Agreement title:
Enter the agreement title, for example the land or farm name.
This must match the agreement title entered on the
Application form.
In which county is the majority of the
land in your application?
Please enter the county in which the woodland your
application relates to is located. If your woodland crossed a
boundary please specify the county in which the greater
proportion is found.
Which Forestry Commission area
team will be advising you?
Please select the Forestry Commission (FC) Area in which
the woodland your application relates to is located from the
drop down list. If your woodland crosses a boundary please
select the area in which the greater proportion is found.
A list of the 5 FC areas and their extents can be found at
www.forestry.gov.uk/england-areas
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
START HERE worksheet continued
Field/Question
Entry required
What is the grid reference of the
centre of your woodland?
Please enter a central, six-figure, OS grid reference for the
woodland, formatted as two letters followed by a space, three
digits, a space and then the final three digits, e.g. GR 123
456.
Enter the Forestry Commission reference number for your
approved woodland management plan. This is usually a 5
digit number.
Approved woodland management plan
You must have a Forestry Commission approved, UKFS
reference number:
compliant woodland management plan, approved within
the past ten years, to be eligible for Countryside
Stewardship.
Please select 'Yes' or 'No' to indicate
the Woodland Support you are
applying for:
Please select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable in each Woodland
Support type’s drop down list.
Please select 'Yes' or 'No' to indicate if
you have a Site of Special Scientific
Interest or Scheduled Monument on
your holding:
Please select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable in both the Site of
Special Scientific Interest and Scheduled Monument drop
down lists.
Please select 'Yes' or 'No' to indicate if
any of the area intended for your
application (WD2, capital or
infrastructure) contains the listed
designations:
Please select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable in each designation’s
drop down list.
Annex 2a: Land summary
This worksheet must be completed for all applications.
Purpose: to provide details of and information about the land parcels being included in the application.
Column number/heading
Entry required
ID
Unique identifier for each parcel automatically generated when a land
parcel is entered, which can be used to cross reference parcels easily
between all of the annexes.
OS Map Sheet ref/National
Grid no.
Total area of this parcel
LFA Status
1
Are you including
this parcel in your
application?
Details of all of the land parcels relating to your application will be prepopulated in these columns.
If you find that some of your eligible land parcels are not shown
in Annex 2a:
If the parcels are visible on the map provided with your application
pack please add the details of the parcel to this sheet, otherwise
please contact us using the contact details at the top of the letter that
was sent with this application form.
Select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ as applicable.
Note: you must select ‘Yes’ for every parcel that you wish to
include in your application otherwise the parcel will not be
populated/available for selection in Annexes 2b and 2c.
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2a: Land summary continued
Column number/heading
OPTIONAL
2
Entry required
Column 2 is optional. If required use this column to enter the woodland
compartments and sub compartments for the land parcel.
Please note; if a parcel covers multiple woodland compartments you
Compartments and
sub compartments in may list multiple compartments in one row against a single land parcel.
this parcel
Compartment references you enter on Annex 2a will automatically
populate the corresponding column in Annex 2b.
Enter the BPS land use code for the land parcel. If no land use code is
available for the parcel you must ensure you register the land use as
‘Woodland’ with the RPA as soon as possible. Agreements cannot be
issued without this.
3
4
BPS land use code
Existing EWGS
agreement on this
parcel?
For details of land use codes, see the latest list of codes on the ‘How
to apply for the Basic Payment Scheme in 2015’ page at
www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-apply-for-the-basicpayment-scheme-in-2015 Note if RPA update the codes for 2016 the
link above may not work and you may need to search for a later
version of the list on gov.uk.
This question covers land that contributes to the area of a scheme as
well as land with specific options on it. It does not include woodland
management plans. Existing schemes on land parcels within your
application may affect eligibility of and/or may require an amendment
to the existing agreement.
Select ‘Yes’ if there is an existing English Woodland Grant Scheme
(EWGS) on this parcel, or ‘No’ if there is no existing EWGS
agreement.
If you select ‘No’ you do not need to complete columns 5 - 7 and they
will be greyed out.
5
How many ha of this
parcel are under the
EWGS agreement?
Enter the ha of the parcel that is under the EWGS agreement, to two
decimal places.
6
What is the EWGS
agreement number?
Enter the EWGS agreement number (e.g. 30000)
7
What is the expiry
date of the EWGS
agreement?
Enter the expiry date of the EWGS agreement, in the format dd/mm/yy.
8
Existing ES
agreement on this
parcel?
This question covers land that contributes to the area of a scheme as
well as land with specific options on it. Existing schemes on land
parcels within your application may affect eligibility of and/or may
require an amendment to the existing agreement
Select ‘Yes’ if there is an existing Environmental Stewardship (ES) on
this parcel, or ‘No’ if there is no existing ES agreement.
If you select ‘No’ you do not need to complete columns 9 -11 and they
will be greyed out.
9
How many ha of this
parcel are under the
ES agreement?
Enter the ha of the parcel that is under the ES agreement to two
decimal places.
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2a: Land summary continued
Column number and heading
Entry required
10
What is the ES
agreement number?
Enter the ES agreement number formatted with AG followed by 8
numbers, e.g. AG00000000.
11
What is the expiry
date of the ES
agreement?
Enter the expiry date of the ES agreement in the format dd/mm/yy.
Annex 2b: WD2 Woodland Improvement option
This worksheet must be completed if you are including option WD2 in your application.
Purpose: to provide details of the land parcels on which the WD2 Woodland Improvement option will
be located and the work prescriptions you will be undertaking on each of those land parcels.
Column number/heading
Entry required
Land parcel details columns
These columns will be pre-populated from the information you entered
in Annex 2a.
You cannot edit these columns. If any information is missing the
cell(s) will be highlighted in red. To add or change an entry you
must edit the corresponding cell on Annex 2a.
1
Are you applying for
WD2 on this parcel?
2
Hectares of WD2
Select ‘Yes’ if you are applying for WD2 on the parcel, otherwise select
‘No’.
If you select ‘No’ you do not need to complete columns 2-20 and they
will be greyed out.
Enter the number of hectares of WD2 that you wish to apply for on the
land parcel, to two decimal places.
The WD2 option requires a number of work prescriptions to be
undertaken.
Each of the questions in columns 3-20 refers to an individual
prescription.
You must identify all of the prescriptions that apply to the land parcel.
3-20
As shown in
worksheet
Complete all of the columns as follows:

If the prescription applies select ‘Yes’ or a quantity (as applicable
to the column)

If the prescription does not apply, select/enter ‘N/A’ or a zero (as
applicable to the column)
For example, if you will be coppicing three hectares of sweet chestnut
within a land parcel, the area for coppicing must be specified in column
11 and the species to be coppiced in column 12.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2c: Capital items excluding Woodland Infrastructure (FY2)
This worksheet must be completed if you are including capital items (excluding Woodland
Infrastructure FY2) in your application.
Purpose: to provide the locations and details of the capital items (excluding FY2) in your application.
Column number/heading
Entry required
ID
Automatically populated: Unique identifier for the parcel allocated on
Annex 2a, populated once a parcel is selected in the ‘Land Parcel’
column.
Land parcel
Please select the land parcel you wish to add a capital item to from the
drop down list.
Note if the parcel you require is not shown in the drop down list,
please check Annex 2a to make sure it has been entered there.
Automatically populated: Area of the parcel selected in the ‘Land
Parcel’ column.
Total area of this parcel
Compartment(s) or sub
compartment(s)
You cannot edit this column. If the land parcel area is missing the
cell will be highlighted in red. To add or change the area you must
edit the corresponding cell on Annex 2a.
This column is optional. If required use this column to enter the
woodland compartments and sub compartments in which the capital
item will be located.
Select the capital item you wish to locate on the parcel from the drop
down list.
1
Capital item
Where an item has a split payment rate there will be corresponding
options so that the right payment rate can be chosen – for instance
there are three options in the drop down list for rhododendron control
(SB6) reflecting three possible payment rates and you must chose the
one that applies to you – see individual item guides if in doubt
(www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardship-grants)
IMPORTANT: if a fence goes across two or more land parcels you
must select the capital item on each land parcel the fence applies
to and enter individual quantities for each length of fencing on
those land parcels.
2
Unit
Automatically populated: Unit of measurement of the capital item
selected in the ‘Capital item’ column.
Enter the quantity of the capital item, to two decimal places for ha &
metres and as a whole number for all other items.
3
Quantity
4
Payment rate
Automatically populated: Payment rate for the capital item. Will not
populate until an option is selected in the ‘Capital item’ column.
5
Value
Automatically populated: Value of the capital item on this parcel. Will
not populate until the parcel’s size, capital item and quantity columns
are complete.
Note: for item SB2: Scrub control - difficult sites which pays as a
percentage of costs enter the full estimated cost of the item to 2
decimal places.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2d: Capital item Woodland Infrastructure (FY2)
This worksheet must be completed if you are including capital item Woodland Infrastructure
(FY2) in your application.
Purpose: to provide details of capital item Woodland Infrastructure (FY2) in your application. More
information on Woodland Infrastructure (FY2) can be found at www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardshipgrants/woodland-infrastructure-fy2
Column number/heading
Total estimated costs of
infrastructure including VAT and
agents fees
Entry required
Please enter the total estimated cost of the infrastructure that you
are applying for, to two decimal places. Please specify your full
estimated costs (not the grant payment amount). Include any
agent’s fees and any VAT applicable.
To calculate an estimate of the costs of your project you can use
the Forestry Commission civil engineering calculator available
from http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-8NQEGX
Will your work be permitted
development?
Please select ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ from the drop down list as applicable
for each of these questions.
Does your work require planning
permission?
Please note that due to time restrictions any works which require
planning permission must have an application made to the local
planning authority no later than the point at which you submit your
Countryside Stewardship initial application (no later than the 31st
May). If you have not done this your application may be withdrawn
as you may not have all required consents in place in time. All
final and complete permissions must be in place by the final
application submission deadline of 30 September.
Do you have planning permission
in place?
Please select 'Yes' to confirm that
you have attached a detailed
specification (including maps and
technical drawings) of the project
with your application.
You must provide a detailed specification (including maps and
technical drawings) for the proposed infrastructure project with
your application (before 31st May).
Select ‘Yes’ from the drop down list to indicate these have been
completed and will be submitted with the form.
How to score your Woodland Support application and complete Annex 2e
Please read the guidance below carefully before you complete Annex 2e.
How to score your Woodland Support application
General Details:
Countryside Stewardship support is competitive and targeted. Proposals need to be scored to
determine which applications will ultimately receive support. Applicants must complete a self-score of
their proposal to be associated with their applications which need to be submitted by the deadline of
31st May 2016. The proposal must achieve a minimum threshold score of 1100 to be eligible. If you do
not reach this score you will not be able to proceed and should not submit your application.
Annex 2e: Scoring should be used to self-score your proposal for the Woodland Improvement
option/capital items you are including in your application.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
How to score your application continued
Eligibility
In order to progress the application will need to meet the following criteria:

Area: An application will need to cover an overall area (see below for definition) of at least 3
hectares. Note: if the application includes an area of woodland SSSI applications will need to have
an overall area of at least 1 hectare; if the application is accompanied by an agri-environment
application for the same property the woodland application will need to have a minimum overall
area of 0.5ha.

Capital Value: The total value of capital items within applications needs to be at least £500.

Minimum score: An application must reach an eligibility score of 1100 points. If you do not reach
this score you will not be able to proceed and should not submit your application. After the initial
application window is closed (31 May 2016) all applications nationally will be ranked against each
other (on the basis of score) in order to determine which proposals are most likely to be successful.
A further round of ranking will determine those final applications which will progress to be offered an
agreement after the final submission deadline of 30 September 2016.

Woodland Management Plan: All activity proposed within woodland improvement applications will
need to be justified by a current Forestry Commission approved Woodland Management Plan
Defining area for scoring:
All Woodland Improvement options/items are scored collectively using the overall area covered by the
combined activities.

For the WD2 Woodland Improvement option - the area to be scored is that on which the activity is
taking place i.e. the area intended for receipt of a multi-year payment;

For capital items, including Woodland Infrastructure FY2, the area is that which is
impacted/benefitted by the investment – known as the ‘Area of Influence’. The area of influence is
dependent on the capital item that is being used i.e. for a deer fence it would be the area within the
fence; for woodland infrastructure it would be the area that the road brings into active management.
For further information please refer to the CS Higher Tier Manual.
(www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-manual)
Any area of land can only be scored once:

Where multi-year and capital/infrastructure elements overlap the multi-year element will be used for
scoring purposes. If infrastructure and/or multiple capital item areas of influence overlap only count
the area once.

Where more than one objective could apply to all or part of the area in the application it should only
be scored once but a supplementary score can be added. See the third bullet under the ‘How score
is calculated’ heading below.

The area used for scoring purposes is the combined area covered (i.e. any overlap is not counted
twice).
Objectives and Land Information Search (LIS)
Any area to be scored must fit into one of four Countryside Stewardship objectives:
1
Priority habitats;
2
Priority species;
3
PAWS restoration;
4
Water
All of the land included in your application must be designated under at least one of these objectives
which will correspond to ‘spatial layers’ on the Forestry Commission’s online system Land Information
Search (LIS). You can access LIS at www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-6DFKMN.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
How to score your application continued
You should use this facility to determine which areas of your land fall within the spatial layers for any of
the four objectives. When using LIS for this purpose you should select the ‘Advanced’ search option.
You will need to navigate to your woodland and the spatial layers required for your scoring purposes
will be detailed on the right hand side of the page. These can be activated or deactivated by clicking in
their corresponding square tick boxes next to their names. Further instructions on how to use LIS is
available on the LIS page – after you have selected ‘Advance’ search. You can also use LIS to
measure areas of land.
Across your whole application a total score must be calculated for each objective which will require
opening the spatial layers in LIS – which layers are required for each objective are detailed in the table
below. Please note the following:
Where more than one objective could apply (i.e. more than one spatial layer applies to a section of
land) then the applicant needs to determine which one is to be used for scoring purpose. This is
discretionary and the applicant can decide on the basis of the relative scores. Supplementary points
will be awarded later if your land is covered by more than one spatial layer.
How score is calculated.
The score for each objective is calculated through a combination of a predetermined ‘base score’ and
the area score calculated by the applicant (including the area of influence of capital and infrastructure
options – see the Defining area for scoring section above).

For each objective a predetermined base score has been allocated by the Forestry Commission
according to Countryside Stewardship priorities (this base score is prepopulated in the score form
and cannot be changed).

The applicant must establish the area to be scored against any relevant objectives. This area will be
inserted into the score form and the final score will be automatically calculated.

In some cases supplementary scores are added to the preliminary total. Supplementary scores are
awarded for applications where Woodland bird assemblage, woodland SSSI and/or multiple
objectives apply. See the table below for further details.
The table below shows the ‘gateway’ criteria for each of the four priority objectives with guidance on
how to verify that your land falls into the correct spatial layer. In order to score your application against
any of the objectives you must meet the ‘gateway’ criteria.
Gateway criteria for priority objectives
You can access LIS at www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-6DFKMN
Biodiversity
CS
Priority
Objective
Gateway
Priority
Habitat
50% or more of the woodland for this
objective must be in the higher
priority habitat spatial layer.
Woodland in lower priority areas
must also be in a Countryside
Stewardship priority area for priority
species or woodland bird
assemblage to be included in this
objective.
For conifer woodland, the intention
for conversion to broadleaf must be
identified in the management plan
other than where specific SSSI
requirements state otherwise.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
How to check
LIS
Layer
Colour
Higher
Open the two separate data layers in
the FC Land Information Search (LIS)
titled ‘CS Biodiversity Woodland
Improvement higher and lower spatial
priority’ to check the priority area
applicable (i.e. higher/ lower *).
Page 20 of 28
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
How to score your application continued
Gateway criteria for priority objectives continued
Objective
Gateway
How to check
LIS
Layer
Colour
Priority
Species
Refer to the specific Countryside
Stewardship Statement of Priorities
for the list of priority species
potentially within or adjacent to your
woodland:
www.gov.uk/government/collections/
countryside-stewardship-statementsof-priorities
The area benefitting a priority species
is defined by the area of
activity/influence directly benefitting
the priority species objective in the
Woodland Improvement multi-year
option or associated capital item(s).
N/A
PAWS
restoration
The area against this objective must
be within a PAWS restoration area.
The objective area must be
predominantly conifer (i.e. 50% or
more of the trees (canopy) are
conifer)
Open the data layer in LIS titled ‘CS
Biodiversity - Priority Habitat Proximity
- Ancient Woodland - PAWS’
Next open the High and Medium
categories from the 'CS Biodiversity Priority Habitat Network' layer to check
that the proposed PAWS restoration
activity is in a priority habitat network
area.
CCF for
Water
The area against this objective must
be within a water quality catchment
area for acidification.
The woodland will need to be
managed to meet the UKFS Practice
Guide titled ‘Managing forests in acid
sensitive water catchments’
Open the spatial layer in LIS titled 'CS
Water- Water quality- Acidification' to
find out whether the application area is
within the spatial layer.
Water
Biodiversity
CS
Priority
Supplementary Scores
Woodland The application area is made up of
Bird
blocks within or touching a
Assemblage Woodland Bird Assemblage area.
SSSI
Multiple
Objectives
Open the following layer in LIS: 'CS
Biodiversity - Priority Species Woodland bird Assemblage' to check
whether the application is within the
data layer. If this requirement is met
an additional score of 1000 can be
applied.
All or part of the application is
located within a woodland SSSI
Open the data layer in LIS titled 'Sites
of Special Scientific interest' to check
how much of the application is in a
SSSI. A 10% supplement is added to
the score for the area which is in a
SSSI.
All or part of the application falls
within multiple priority objective
spatial layers
If all or part of the application falls
within the spatial layer for one or more
priority objective(s) (Priority habitat,
Priority species, PAWS restoration or
CCF) in addition to the main scoring
objective an additional score of 1000
points can be applied.
N/A
*Definition (for scoring purposes) of higher, lower priority for Priority Habitat:
Higher Priority: All ancient woodland, all wooded SSSIs and any other woodland which is currently
unmanaged (i.e. not subject to a stand-alone felling licence or grant scheme in the last fifteen years).
Lower Priority: any other woodland (i.e. not ancient, not SSSI and other woodland which is currently
subject to a stand-alone felling licence or grant scheme).
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2e: Scoring
This worksheet must be completed for all applications.
Purpose: to calculate a self-score for the options and items applied for in Annexes 1b-e based on the
scoring framework described above. Please ensure that you have read the whole of the ‘How to
score your Woodland Support application’ section of this guidance before attempting to score
your application.
Priority objective scores
Column/row
Entry required
Enter the total area of WD2 applied for each of the priority
objectives (i.e. Priority Habitat, Priority Species, PAWS or
Water).
Column A
Total Area (in ha) for WD2
(Priority)
The sum of the areas within the individual objectives must
not be greater than the total area of WD2 for which you have
applied.
All land for Woodland Improvement ‘multi-year’ WD2
applications needs to be attributed to a priority objective.
Any single area cannot be attributed to more than one
objective but your application as a whole may cover more
than one of the objectives (see Defining Area for Scoring
section in the ‘How to score your application section’ above).
Enter any additional ‘area of influence’ for any capital items
and/or infrastructure (FY2) against each priority.
Column B
Additional Area (in ha) for
Capital items
Column C
Total Area (in ha) for
Objective
Automatically calculated: Totals of columns A and B. Will not
populate until columns A and B have been completed.
Column D
Base Score
Pre-populated: Base score for each of the priorities.
Column E
Area score
Pre-populated: Area score for each of the priorities.
Column F
Applicant Self-Score
Automatically calculated: The score for each of the priority
objectives
Please see Defining Area for Scoring section in the ‘How to
score your application section’ above for details on how to
calculate the area of influence.
For Forestry commission use only: please do not enter
anything in this column.
Column G:
FC Agreed Score
Preliminary Totals row
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
If your application progresses following an initial ranking
exercise your woodland officer will use this column to verify
the final score following any alterations made to the
application during the ‘developing applications’ period
between the 31st May and 30th September.
The total area and score for the priority objectives, i.e.
before any supplementary objectives have been calculated.
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Step 4 continued - Complete Annexes 1 and/or 2
Annex 2e: Scoring continued
Supplementary scores
Please read the instructions in the Gateway criteria for priority objectives table above carefully to see if
you are eligible for any of the supplementary scores and answer the following questions on Annex 2e.
Question/row/column
Entry required
Is the application within the Woodland
Bird Assemblage spatial layer?
Select ‘Yes’, ‘No’ or ‘N/A’ as applicable. If you select ‘Yes’
the ‘Applicant self-score’ column will show the
supplementary score.
Enter the area of the application that is
within SSSI
If any of the area in your application is in a Woodland SSSI
enter the area of SSSI. If you enter an area the ‘Applicant
self-score’ column will calculate and show the 10% uplift
score.
Does all or part of the application fall
within the spatial layer for two or more
priority objective(s)?
Select ‘Yes’, ‘No’ or ‘N/A’ as applicable. If you select ‘Yes’
the ‘Applicant self-score’ column will show the
supplementary score.
Grand Totals row
Automatically calculated: The total of the preliminary and
supplementary scores, i.e. the total score for your
application.
The total score must be 1100 or over for your
application to be eligible. If it has not reached this score
you should not submit your application.
For Forestry Commission use only: please do not enter
anything in this column.
FC Agreed score
If your application progresses following an initial ranking
exercise your woodland officer will use this column to verify
the final score following any alterations made to the
application during the ‘developing applications’ period
between the 31st May and 30th September.
Grant totals and evidence worksheet
Purpose: this worksheet shows a list of all of the options and capital items in your application, total
quantity and value of each option/capital item and details the evidence requirements for each of the
options/capital items. Note that the worksheet will not populate fully until you have completed Annexes
2a-e.
Please check this table carefully to ensure it contains all of the elements you wish to apply for. If any
element is not correct you will need to go back to the relevant worksheet and correct it, you cannot
amend the application summary itself.
Please read the evidence requirements for your application carefully, it is your responsibility to ensure
the correct evidence is in place at the correct time. If you do not provide any part of the required
evidence by the deadline indicated your application will be unable to proceed.
Application summary worksheet
Purpose: this worksheet shows the total values of options and capital items in your application and the
overall value of your application (excluding any capital items which are paid as a percentage of actual
costs). Note that the worksheet will not populate fully until you have completed Annexes 2a-e.
Please check that the totals reflect what you wish to apply for.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 5 - Complete the Woodland Support agreement map
If you are applying for a CS Higher Tier Agri Environment application without Woodland Support
you do not need to complete this step. Please go to Step 6.
The application pack sent to you by Natural England will include a base map covering the land parcels
you wish to include in your woodland application. This will be your agreement map.
The following must be included in the agreement map:

The map must show all of the land parcels on which the woodland improvement application is to be
located. Depending on the area of land in scope of the application this may cover more than one
sheet

The location of the proposed area of Woodland Improvement (WD2) and any area based capital
works must be shown (capital works must be marked with a coloured pen and any capital code(s)
should be listed next to them)

For capital items the location must be shown and the capital code(s) indicated next to them

Fence lines stating which type of fence (code) is being applied for. For example Deer fencing (FG9)
or Temporary Deer Fencing (FG10)

9 Digit Single Business identifier (SBI); application year and agreement title (as detailed on the
application form) should be indicated on the top right of the map.
Use black ink for all annotations. If a mistake is made please strike through and correct, please do not
use correction fluid.
Step 6 - Complete Section 3: Environmental Benefits
If you are applying for a CS Higher Tier Woodland Support only agreement you do not need to
complete Section 3. Please go to Step 7.
Section 3 should be used to record in summary the biodiversity, water quality and historic environment
benefits your proposed agreement will provide. This information will be used to score the environmental
value of your CS application against others to produce a ranked list of potential agreements.
The environmental features and issues that are a high priority for CS are set out in the CS Statements of
Priorities (see www.gov.uk/government/collections/countryside-stewardship-statements-of-priorities) for
your area. Please refer to that to help you fill in this section. More detail for your holding is provided
through the magic (geographic information) portal at www.magic.gov.uk
Question 32.
Priority Habitat
(a) If you are intending to manage existing priority habitat in the application, tick ‘Yes’
and complete Questions 32 (b) and (c), otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to question
33.
(b) Please record the existing habitats on your holding that meet the priority habitat
summary descriptions provided in the ‘Priority Habitat – summary descriptions’
guidance (available from www.gov.uk/government/publications/countrysidestewardship-higher-tier-application-form) AND which you intend to manage under
CS.
(c) Please record the habitats specified in the table on your holding AND which you
intend to manage under CS. Be aware that there are specific eligibility and
targeting criteria that apply which your NE adviser will discuss with you.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 6 continued - Complete Section 3: Environmental Benefits
Question 33.
Habitat creation and/or restoration
Countryside Stewardship supports both creation of new priority habitat1 and its
restoration from degraded habitats2, in particular where such options are targeted to
extend, link or buffer habitats and to improve water quality.
1
A range of priority habitats can be created on land currently under arable, intensive
grassland or forestry usage. Creation activity will be highly targeted and will dependent
on the land being assessed as having high potential for successful creation to the
target priority habitat type.
2
Degraded habitats include sites that could be restored through appropriate
management. Examples include fen from scrub woodland, drained sites on peat,
afforested heathlands, some semi-improved grasslands, upland sites with low cover
(less than 25%) of heather.
(a) If you are interested in applying for Habitat Creation on your holding, tick ‘Yes’ and
complete Questions 33 (b) and (c) as applicable, otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to
Question 34.
(b) If you wish to create habitat, please enter details in the box, otherwise leave it blank
(c) If you wish to restore habitat, please enter details in the box, otherwise leave it
blank.
Question 34.
Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package
Options that deliver the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package need to cover a
minimum of 5% of the farmed land of the holding. Farmed land is defined here as the
area of arable land, temporary grassland and improved permanent grassland minus the
area of any priority habitats (e.g. species-rich grassland, lowland heathland, woodland
etc.) which may be put under CS options designed for these habitats
You may already be delivering Environmental Stewardship options through your
existing ELS or HLS agreement which will be similar to the Countryside Stewardship
options that make up the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package such as pollen and
nectar mixes, wild bird seed mixes and flower rich margins.
(a) If you are intending to apply for the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package in
this application, tick ‘Yes’ and complete Questions 34 (b) and (c), otherwise tick
‘No’ and continue to Question 35.
(b) If you are prepared to undertake the type and scale of land management required
for the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package on your holding, tick ‘Yes’,
otherwise tick ‘No’.
(c) Please tick the box to confirm that you have marked all the parcels you wish to be
considered for the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package on Annex 1a.
If you need further information and advice on how you would deploy the Wild Pollinator
and Farm Wildlife Package on your holding please refer to Section 8.3 ‘Applying with
the Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package’ of the CS Higher Tier Manual 2016
(www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-manual) and
talk to your local Natural England adviser.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 6 continued - Complete Section 3: Environmental Benefits
Question 35.
Priority Species
(a) If your holding or land near to the holding supports any known populations of
priority species or species assemblages (see www.magic.gov.uk) that require
tailored management and advice as listed on the CS Statements of Priorities for
your area (see www.gov.uk/government/collections/countryside-stewardshipstatements-of-priorities), tick ‘Yes’ and complete Question 35 (b) to (d), otherwise
tick ‘No’ and continue to Question 36.
(b) If priority species are present on your holding, please enter details in the box,
otherwise leave the box blank and continue to Question 35 (c).
(c) If priority species assemblages are present on your holding, please enter details in
the box, otherwise leave the box blank and continue to Question 35 (d).
For the priority species and the species assemblages you have listed at (b) and (c)
you will need to carry out land management practices and capital works that meet
the specific needs of these species.
(d) If you agree to carry out land management practices and capital works that meet
the specific needs of the species listed in 35 (b) and (c), tick ‘Yes’, otherwise tick
‘No’.
If you need further information and advice on how you would manage for priority
species please talk to your local Natural England adviser.
Question 36.
Run off/soil erosion risk
This question draws on knowledge of your fields and their inherent soil type, slope and
risk. Identify parcels where run-off or soil erosion may occur, using the Identify and
mark parcels identified with ‘run-off and soil erosion risk’ section in Step 3. If this is an
issue on your land, mark these on the FER maps and tick next to the relevant parcels
on your Annex 1a data sheet under the ‘Run-off/soil erosion risk’ column heading.
(a) If any of the land in the application is at risk from run-off or soil erosion, tick ‘Yes’
and complete Questions 36 (b) and (c), otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to
Question 37.
(b) Please tick the box to confirm that you have marked any fields at risk from runoff/soil erosion on your Farm Environment Record (FER) maps.
(c) Please tick the box to confirm that you have completed the ‘Run-off/soil erosion
risk’ column in Annex 1a to show which parcels are at risk.
Question 37.
Water quality and flood risk management
To access water quality information for your land use the MAGIC website
www.magic.gov.uk. The information is located under ‘Countryside Stewardship
Targeting & Scoring Layers’, then ‘Water, and then ‘Countryside Stewardship Water
Quality Priority Areas’. Note that this layer can then be made transparent using the
slider under ‘Countryside Stewardship Targeting & Scoring Layers’. You will need to
navigate to your land and then use the 'Identify' tool in order to check the information
specific to your land parcels.
The areas shown in red are those which have been identified as overall High Priority
for water quality (Medium shown as yellow), however to complete the form use the
specific pollutant details for your land which are accessed by using the identify tool.
You may also wish to refer to your local CS Statements of Priority
www.gov.uk/government/collections/countryside-stewardship-statements-of-priorities
and the table in Annex 6 of the CS Higher Tier Manual 2016
(www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-manual)
called ‘Water quality options and their corresponding pollutant pressure and protected
area’ for information.
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 6 continued - Complete Section 3: Environmental Benefits
Question 37.
continued
Consider if you are able to change the land management practises on those fields and
yards, and if you intend to apply an option or capital item to those fields.
(a) If you are intending to apply for water quality and resource protection options
and/or capital items tick ‘Yes’ and complete Questions 37 (b) to (d), otherwise tick
‘No’ and continue to Question 38.
(b) Please tick the box to confirm that you have marked all parcels, including yards and
tracks, you wish to consider for water quality and resource protection
options/capital items in the ‘Will Soil and Water/Resource protection options/capital
items be used on this parcel?’ column on Annex 1a.
(c) Complete the table with the areas of land you are intending to enter under water
quality options/capital items, relevant to the local pollutant pressures highlighted
from MAGIC (see www.magic.gov.uk). Only the land parcels identified on Annex 1a
with the potential to improve water quality should be included in this table.
(d) If you are interested in applying for constructed wetlands or a large scale sediment
trap tick ‘Yes’, otherwise tick ‘No’.
Question 38.
Livestock unit requirements for specific capital items
If you are applying for RP29 Self-supporting covers for slurry stores and/or RP30
Floating covers (slurry stores and lagoons) tick ‘Yes’ and complete the table below
Question 38 with details of your livestock, otherwise tick ‘No’ and continue to Question
39.
Question 39.
Historic Environment
(a) If you have received and included a full copy of a 2015 Historic Environment FER
(HEFER) for all the land and features in this application tick ‘Yes’, otherwise tick
‘No’. If you do not already have a HEFER one will be initiated by Natural England
once your application has been assessed and scored.
(b) Please complete the table with details known to you at this time from your
Environment Information map, a previous HEFER response, or your own records.
Step 7 - Complete Section 4: Declaration and undertakings
Complete Section 4 to confirm that you have read and understood the requirements of the Countryside
Stewardship scheme and the undertakings that you are making in submitting your application.

Read the declaration, undertakings and warning carefully.

Sign Section 4 and enter your name in block letters, your capacity (e.g. sole trader, company
director, agent) and the date of your signature. Note for CS Higher Tier Woodland Support only
applications you do not need to sign the form initially and will be asked to sign it later on, once a
woodland officer has finalised your final application with you and completed a site visit.
The party/parties that sign the application at Section 4 must have full authority and capacity to
represent and bind the applicant.
If the applicant is a partnership and the partners have not appointed an Application Submission
Agent by completing a Countryside Stewardship Agent Authorisation form, all partners must sign.
The Countryside Stewardship Agent Authorisation form is available from
www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-authorise-an-agent
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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Step 8 - Complete the Checklist
Complete the checklist to make sure that you have fully completed your application and attached any
required supporting documents and evidence, including photographs.
Further information on the supporting documents and evidence you must submit with your application is
available in Section 6.4 ‘Evidence: Record keeping and inspection requirements’ of the Countryside
Stewardship Higher Tier Manual (www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-highertier-manual)and the management option and capital item descriptions in the CS Grants tool at
www.gov.uk/countryside-stewardship-grants.
Step 9 - Submit your application
Please send all Sections of the completed form together with maps and other supporting documents to
the Natural England office or email address shown in the ‘Returning your form’ section of the ‘Important
information about your application’ document attached to your application form.
If you are submitting your application by post you will need to email Annex 1 and/or 2 (as applicable)
to the email contact of the Natural England Technical Services site dealing with the county your
application relates to.
It is recommended that you obtain proof of postage for these and any other documents you post to
Natural England. You are advised to retain a copy of your completed application form and maps.
What happens next?
What happens once you have submitted your application?
Once your application has been received by Natural England, it will be checked to see that:

you meet the eligibility requirements;

all the necessary details have been entered on your application form and evidence received; and

all of your maps have been completed
If your application fails any of the above checks, we will contact you to explain what is wrong and how
the failed check(s) can be corrected (if applicable).
The Higher Tier grant is competitive, which means that not everyone who applies will be
successful. A scoring process based on environmental benefit will be used to select successful
applicants if the scheme is oversubscribed.
What will happen if your application has been successful?
If your application is successful you will be contacted by an advisor (Natural England or Forestry
Commission depending on application type) and invited to work up your application towards a draft
agreement. This will involve a site visit and possibly changes to your application as a result of advisor
recommendations.
What will happen if your application has been unsuccessful?
We will tell you if your application has not been successful.
If you are unsuccessful, you may appeal. For further details see Section 7.4.1 ‘Appeals process –
disagreeing with a decision by Natural England’ of the CS Higher Tier Manual.
(www.gov.uk/government/publications/countryside-stewardship-higher-tier-manual)
CS Higher Tier Application form 2016 notes
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